


I have heard the future

by Pandigital



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-06
Updated: 2016-07-06
Packaged: 2018-07-21 21:56:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7406458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pandigital/pseuds/Pandigital
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John had heard God, once, high as a kite and chasing that dragon, he had heard God. But he had never heard the future. Then she came into his life and flipped him around so quick it made him dizzy. When she spoke, he heard the future and he liked what he heard.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I have heard the future

Hancock would say that he was surprised when two Courser Synths showed up in Goodneighbor, if he hadn’t spent the better part of a year traveling with a woman who had been frozen since the war. A Pre-War vintage dame. She had strolled into his town with Nick Valentine and grenade grime on her face. A dame with tan skin and warm brown eyes and smile smoother than silk. A Smoothskin so slick and easy on the eyes he had felt like he was on an extreme mentat high. She had been tricked by Bobbi No Nose and had apologized up and down for it. He had forgiven her, told her about wanting to keep the killer sharp, and she had smiled so brightly at him the rain outside looked like shards of diamonds against the glass.

They had done everything after that. Had helped Nick find a two hundred year old crime lord, had helped a crazy radio host and his super mutant friend, named Strong, escape an old tower in the middle of the Commonwealth. She had gone all over this damn nuclear war zone and helped people. They had even gone to the Glowing Sea to find a super mutant named Virgil who had worked for the boogey-man. The Institute. They had gone through hell to find every part they needed to build a teleportation machine into The Institute. She had climbed onto that machine almost two months ago and she hadn’t come back. 

He had come back to his town to try and find a way to forget a woman like her. News had begun to reach his ears though of missing people. Her people. Piper, the newspaper writer, from Diamond City. The Minute Man who had made her General, Preston Garvey. MacCready had left for a job and never came back. Nick had went to look into a case and hadn’t come back either. 

That smooth talker Deacon had been sending out feelers for his boss until they had been cut off too. A rumor had always started going around that a bunch of Brotherhood of Steel assholes were going crazy because their Elder and one of their Paladin’s had gone missing. Everyone she had been in contact with, helpful or otherwise, had been snatched up by the shadows. He was surprised it had taken them this long to get to him, but now, as he sat on a curb in a backalley, getting high on jet, they had come around the corner like ghost and blocked the exit. One looked like some red-head pin-up male model with blue eyes, the other wore sunglasses, skin dark and hair kept close to his scalp. He held the jet in his hands, arms braced on his knees, and smirked up at them. He had his shotgun on him if things got...interesting. 

“Can I help you boys?” he asked. 

The dark skinned one folded his hands behind his back, loose and controlled, a killer in perfect skin, “John Hancock?” 

“Who wants to know?” 

“I am X6-88. This is Z2-56. We are here to escort you to see Father. And The Mother.” 

John clicked his tongue, “And why should I trust you?” 

Z2-56 reached into his pocket of his leather trench coat, slowly, and pulled out an honest to God, handwritten letter. It was folded up neat. He handed it to John and he looked down at it. Her name was written in neat curvy letters. Alice. He opened it and read the single page. She asked him to trust her if he couldn’t trust them. He folded the letter just as neatly as he had been given and pushed himself up to his feet, tucking the letter and the jet into his coat. He lifted his arm and smiled mockingly at them, “Lead the way.” 

X6-88 grabbed his arm tightly, “Hold on.” 

And the same white light that had taken her away took him. The room, when it came back into focus, was wobbly and tilting. The synths each grabbed a shoulder to steady him. He could see two shadows beyond the wall, through a door opening. As he got his bearings back the shadows began to take shape. Nick and Piper were on the other side. Nick looked uneasy but also bored. Hancock couldn’t blame him, since these were the people who threw him out. Piper looked ready to burst out of her skin with excitement. As he walked toward them the two synths walked beside him. 

“They finally found you!” Piper said as he rushed toward him and pulled him into a deep hug before letting him go, “We have been waiting for you, you twit!” 

“Waiting for me for what?” 

Nick answered, “The people in charge here wanted to meet with everyone. So the meeting hasn’t been able to take place until you got here.” 

John frowned, “Why?” 

“Because,” a voice said as it came from a side room, Desdemona and Deacon, both looking sleepy, “this person, The Mother, is the one pulling the strings. Father, the one who made the synths, listens to her, I suppose.” 

The two synths had nothing to say on the matter. 

Preston Garvey was leaning on the wall next to a glass wall that had nothing on the other side, he finally chose to speak, “We’ve been here since we were asked to come here. But the General hasn’t been seen.” 

“Alice isn’t here?” Hancock asked. 

“We haven’t been let out of this room, so if she is here, she isn’t in the same room as all of us,” Nick said as he opened his coat and took out a cigarette, handing one to Piper, lighting both of them as he took a drag(funny since he had not lungs in which to feel that smoke), before continuing, “it was all fine. Until those Brotherhood of Steel fellas got dragged in.” 

Hancock hadn’t seen them before, trying to make a terminal work for them, muttering under their breaths. He jerked a thumb toward them, “These two?” 

“Yep.” Piper said as she exhaled smoke, “two grade-A assholes who have been fighting with these Railroad bozos since they got here.” 

Deacon gave an offended “hey!” and Desdemona a scowl. The glass wall opened and the synths nodded toward it, X6-88 walked toward it and held out a hand at it. He spoke softly to them, “This elevator will take you down into the main foyer. From there you shall be escorted to the meeting room. You can choose to go willingly to be forced. Either way, you will be in attendance for this meeting.” 

“Alice is down there?” Hancock asked. 

“Yes.” 

He moved toward the lift and got in. Nick and Piper with Preston on his heels. The doors closed and his stomach sank as the lift moved down. The doors opened and another synths, the same model as Nick, was there. It smiled at them and said pleasantly, “Please follow me!” It lead them down a shiny white hall full of light and to a door that opened into a chamber with...well, Hancock wasn’t sure what it was. It was a long metal tube with glass and what looked like metal hoses inside of it. The floor was a huge conveyor belt that kept moving forward to the other end of the tube.

The synth went to a small closet in the corner and came back with four small plastic bags. It smiled at them again and Piper gave it a glare. 

“What is this for?” Preston asked as he took it, gingerly, from the synth. The synth handed them each one as it explained what the hell was going on here. 

“This is a decontamination chamber. Please remove all of your clothing and step onto the belt. The shower is designed to reduce any radiation you may have on you before you enter the meeting room. New clothing shall be given to you at the end of the decontamination process. Your clothing and weapons will need to go into the bag. The clothing will be washed and repaired for you. You may pick up all of your weapons and items when you leave here.” 

“You mean if we leave.” Piper snapped as she began to undress. Most folks in the Commonwealth didn’t even bat an eye at being naked. She threw her hat in first with a lot of force befor going at her jacket and scarf. The synth still had the same pleased smile on its plastic looking face. 

“No, ma’am. When you leave. The meeting will take place and once it has concluded you are free to leave.” 

Hancock gave a snort, “Newsflash, I’m a ghoul. I have radiation leaking out of what’s left of my pores. Is this shit gonna kill me?” 

The synth shook its head as Piper slapped a full of bag of clothing, her gun, two mines, a grenade, and what looked like brass knuckles into its waiting arms, “Mother has told us that. We ask that you go last so that the setting can be adjusted for you, Mayor Hancock. A special suit is ready for you as well.” Piper climbed onto the belt and gave a yelp when the water, pink and foamy looking, shot out and covered her head to toe. 

Nick, bless him, was a cop, metal or flesh, “Why does she know that?” 

“She is aware of the strife of the people who inhabit the world above. She does not want anyone to be uncomfortable during their stay here.” 

Preston gave over his bag of clothing and nodded down at his much heavier weapons, one hand covering his manhood, “Why should we trust you?” 

“I are not trusting me. You are trusting the woman who called you here.” 

The doors behind them opened as Preston got onto the belt and gave low curse as the same pink foamy water hit him. Deacon and Desdemona, along with those Brotherhood pricks, came in with a different synth telling them what they had already heard. Nick handed over his bag and got on with a scowl as neon radiation green foam hit him. Hancock put his hat in and took his sweet time getting undressed. Deacon was on next, followed by Desdemona. The two Brotherhood men acted like they were being marched to their deaths as they stripped and gave up their weapons. Once he was done he handed the synth his bag and got on. 

The belt was an even pace and the foam was white that hit him. It burnt like fire and he grit his teeth as he went through the foam. Then a blue foam, a purple foam, rinsed off with hot water, then cold. A super heatwave near the end and then he was set down onto the marble floor on the other side. A suit and underwear was handed to him. The two synths from before, 88 and the ginger, were waiting for them. Piper looked ready to kill someone. 

Hancock didn’t blame her. But he still wanted to know why she was so pissed. Other than being pseudo kidnapped. So he did. She gave him a glare as they were lead down white halls, up winding stairs, and into a clean room with a long table and many chairs. 

“MacCready was here and he tried to fight these synths. They broke his arm. They took him away and we haven’t seen him since.” 

“None of us are leaving, woman.” the boss of the two Brotherhood goons growled out, “We are in the belly of the beast. Your friends are dead and we are next.” 

“They coulda killed us before now,” Nick said over his shoulder as he took a seat, pulling out the chair next to him for Piper to plop down in, “not drag us all the way here.” 

“Then why didn’t they?” Deacon asked as he flipped his chair around and sat down, folding his arms over the top. 

X6-88 answered as he stood near the front, gun at the ready, “Mother gave us very detailed instruction on why we were not allowed to use our usual methods to bring you here. She told us to give you the letters and to be on our best behavior when we did. Father agreed to this, but has put in a contingency plan in case of unforeseen issues today.” 

Desdemona gave a snort from her seat next to Deacon, “Like what? Make us into synths and kill us once your done? Ruin everything that we worked for because your cruel slave owners deem it just? This is hardly a friendly effort of The Institutes part.” 

“You’re alive. Be grateful.” X6-88 said with a shrug. Hancock sat down and the door opened behind him as, of all people, MacCready came in, so fresh smelling and clean looking that all of them did a double take. He glared at them, holding his broken arm, wrapped in thick plaster, and took a heavy seat next to Hancock. Less than a second later twenty armed Courser Synths came in, surround them, guns at the ready. A low and dangerous hum. Two voices could be heard from outside the door. A man and woman. A woman who sounded very familiar. They all watched the door as an old in a lab coat and a full beard stepped into the room, looking at the woman next to him. Hancock would know her anywhere. Jet black hair with white streaks in it(due to being frozen, age, stress, her hair was turning white without her permission and she didn’t much care if it did or not), those warm dark brown eyes, that same perky mouth and curvy body. She wasn’t wearing her blue vault suit, nor her power armor, hell, not even that Silver Shroud get up she had been given almost a year and a half back. She was dressed in a simple black button up shirt, faded jeans and no shoes. Her hair had been cut short and it cupped her face now. She and the man were talking to each other. Like how a mother talks to her son. A little boy that was the spitting image of Alice came in next and jumped into a seat. Alice finally turned to look at the room and once she saw the Courser she pinched the bridge of her nose with a heavy sigh. The old man next to her frowned and walked toward the head seat. She clapped her hands together with a tight frown and closed eyes before snapping to face the old man, her heels coming together with a small slap of skin to skin. She pointed her folded hands at the old man with a tense, “Shaun.” 

He mimicked her from his seat, elbows on the table, “Mother.” 

“Mother?” Nick, Piper, Preston, Deacon and everyone but him asked in surprise. 

Alice ignored them and used her whole body to gesture to the room they were all in, “What do you call this?” 

“The meeting that you insisted on having.” 

“With this many Courser in one room?” 

Shaun, her kid(so who was the kid in the chair kicking his feet at the other end of the table? Her grandson? Oh boy he wished he had his chems on him), leaned back in the chair, folding his hands in front of him, “The Railroad and The Brotherhood of Steel have little reason to like the work we have done and are trying to do. Your Minutemen, while their cause is noble, are no more a threat to us than a single wasp is to a giant with armor on.” 

Alice rolled her eyes and came to sit next to him, holding her head in her hands. Piper leaned forward in her seat, “Is that really your kid?” 

Alice gave a low huff, “Yes. And he is too big to bend over my knee and beat some sense into him.” she turned to Shaun and pointed a stern finger at him, “We talked about this.”

“We have. You have many points that are valid. Too much insight on the state of the world above and its affairs for me to ignore it. Knowing this is only makes sense to listen to you on matters that I do comprehend. But on matters of safety, the well being of all those under my care, I must take heed of my own knowledge. If your...guest, behave then no harm will come to them. But force, deadly if necessary, will be used if the meeting you wished to have goes south.” 

Alice let her head fall down to the table. She placed her hands over the back of her skull and gave a deep sigh, the kind that seem to inflate the whole body and leave something else behind on the exhale. Shaun just looked at her and then reached over to touch one of her hands on her head. She used the other one of hers to cover his. She sat up and rubbed at her face and then looked at each of them and smiled. Shaun went back to sitting with his hands folded in front of him. Piper smiled back, shooting looks at the robots with guns all around the room. Nick was staring right ahead. MacCready was muttering under his breath, his eyes trained on his lap. Deacon and Desdemona were whispering to each other. The Brotherhood men were sitting in perfectly still positions, eyes trained on Shaun and Alice. Alice didn’t stand up as she cleared her throat. 

“Well, I guess introduction are in order. Shaun, I’d like you meet some of my close friends and allies. And the leader of factions you seem to...have disagreements with.” she said and used an open and welcoming palm to gesture to each of them in turn, “This is Nick Valentine, a detective from Diamond City.” 

Shaun looked at Nick and tapped his pointer finger on the table, “Ah, yes. One of the experimental Gen 2 synths. Transplantation of human memory into a mechanical mind. It was the building bricks that would lead us to Coursers. It is nice to meet you, Mr. Valentine.” 

Nick glared at him, “You threw me in the trash heap with no idea what I even was!” 

Shaun shook his head, “The former Director threw you away. I would have kept you here. The mind of a detective would have been useful to us.” 

Alice quickly cutoff Nick, “This my friend, Piper Wright. The owner, head reporter, and best big sister to a cute kid who also happens to sell said newspaper. It’s called Public Occurrences.” 

Shaun nodded his head at Piper who clicked her tongue at him, “Charmed. Mother tells me that your sharp wit and silver tongue have earned you a place on, what did you call it, Mother?” 

X6-88 answered, “She called it the Mayor’s Shit List, Father.” 

Hancock gave a short giggling snort, Piper did smile at that. Shaun only nodded his head. 

“That,” Alice said with slight blush, “isn’t...entirely true. What I said was, “Piper Wright has such a sharp wit and a silver tongue that if she keeps poking that fat mayor the wrong way she’ll end up in a worse place than on his shit list.” That’s what I said.” 

“I assume you are not the mayor in question?” Shaun asked him. Hancock shook his head and popped the “o” on his “nope” before Alice went to the next two on her short list, “This is the leader of The Railroad and one of my allies. Desdemona and Deacon.” 

Shaun gave them a cruel smile, “Yes. From the Old North Church. One if by land and two if by sea. I wonder though, what you have done if we came by teleportation? Scream?” 

“Shaun.” Alice snapped. 

He held up his hands in mock surrender, “I am teasing, Mother. It’s not like we didn’t know where they were all this time. They were more an occasional pest than anything else.” 

“Then why didn’t you take us out?” Desdemona exploded and stood up from her seat in a flurry of color, “Where you so afraid of us and what we could do that you never came to meet us in the pit?!” 

“My dear,” Shaun chuckled, “one way or another those that have run away always come back home. I wonder if you know that at least twenty percent of the synths you save come back of their own volition. Another sixty percent die while they try to blend into the human society that has grown from the ashes of the old world. Seventeen percent of these runaway synths become leaders of raiders and gangs who wish harm on others. Do you know that all that you claim to save, that you claim to try and help, is nothing but a sad three percent who do not die, become evil, or go insane. This means your work, as a whole, means nothing.” 

“ **SHAUN** .” Alice said with gritted teeth, her hands clenched, “That is enough.” 

Desdemona and Deacon had exchanged looks and she sat down, her eye angry and mouth set in a grim line. Hancock finally looked at the killers in the room. They had their guns trained on them now. They must have lifted them up when Desdemona had stood up in anger. Shaun and Alice were looking at each, a glare on face. Shaun looked amused and bored. 

“I am only telling the truth.” he said after a tense moment, “You value being truthful. Should I lie to them? Lie that I do not know about the runaways? Lie that I don’t know where they have been hiding or what they have been doing? I know about the young man who is helping them from the inside. The synths need to learn about being human, so I let it continue.” 

Alice shook her head, “You need to be truthful but also know when to pull your punches.” 

“Of course.” 

She glared at him a moment longer and then gave a low sigh before moving to Preston, “And this is the man who gave me hope for the world, Preston Garvey. The last Minute Man in the Commonwealth. He told me that I was the new General. He is a good man, and he deserves that title more than I do.” 

Preston blushed, “I-I’m better at following orders than giving them, ma’am.” 

“You are still a good man, Preston.” she said with a true but tender smile at him, “Title or not, end of the world or not, good men like you, Nick, Piper, Hancock, even MacCready-”

“I take offense to that!” MacCready said and he finally looked at her, and Alice only gave a helpless shrug before finishing her thought. 

“Good men like all of you are a rare breed.” 

“Rarity is something to be treasured,” Shaun said as he folded his legs and moved to rest his arms on the armrest, “which is one of the main reasons why this meeting is taking place at mother's behest at all. She claims all of you have something inside of you worth being seen by me. Worth this meeting.” 

The older man from the Brotherhood finally spoke up, “And what are we here for?” 

Alice ducked her head and introduced them, “And these two men are Elder Maxson and Paladin Danse. The Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel and a man I saved from being eaten alive by ghouls with Nick.” 

“Well, it is nice to meet the both of you. As for what all of you are here for, let mother finish the introductions and then we can proceed.” 

Alice nodded, “Robert Joseph MacCready, a merc with a heart of gold and bad pickup lines. John Hancock, Mayor of Goodneighbor. And a good friend of mine.” 

Shaun nodded his head, “Now that everyone has been introduced, we may proceed. The reason this meeting was called is because the future of this world is going to be discussed.” 

“And you think you deserve a place in it?” Desdemona snapped. 

Maxson added, “This world would be better if foul things like that ghoul, that synths and these robot lovers would be swept away so that a new clean world could emerge. One without you and your kind of people in it!”

Hancock watched as both Desdemona and Maxson started snapping at each other, harsh words and pointed fingers. Alice only gave a soft sigh and sat down heavily in the chair next to him. She held her head in one hand and lifted the other out to X6-88. He came over and handed her his rifle. Alice didn’t even look as she emptied the clip into the ceiling. The room ducked and stood silent as she handed the rifle back to 88 who only gave a small smirk and nod before going back to his post. Shaun gave Alice a smile. 

“Thank you, mother.” 

“The point is,” Alice said as she took her hand from her face, “Shaun is dying. As per his last will and testament, I am the only living blood he has left. Once he has passed on, I will become the acting director of The Institute.” 

“So what does that mean to us?” Maxson snapped. 

Alice gave him a level look, eyes at half mast, framed by her thick eyelashes, blank and so unimpressed with him, she leant her cheek on her fist, “It means that I will be gaining a lot of power. Enough to start real change in the world. But a world divided isn’t one that can stand to last. It’s the reason the bombs fell in the first place. This meeting is to see if we can work out a solution to make the world a better place.” 

Hancock nodded his head, “For the people, by the people, right?” 

“What is it that you want to change and why do we need to be here?” Piper asked. 

“To spread the word, to see if anything can be done, to try and help each other.” Alice said. 

“I need paper to write this all down.” she said and a synth came forward and placed a whole notebook of paper in front of her and two pens. Piper started to jot down everything. 

“The Railroad will never work with this place of slavery.” Deacon huffed. 

Alice nodded, “Even we changed everything?” 

“How so?” Desdemona asked. 

“We would still be making synths,” Shaun answered, “but mother has suggested that your views on their programming would be beneficial to them. To help to learn how to become human without them losing their minds or deciding that they are better than flesh and blood humans. Mother has made the suggestion, one which, while I do not full heartedly agree on, does seem like something that could work if all parties were to agree on it.” 

“You want us to help synths? The slaves that you would still be making? From the people that would still keep being kidnapped?” Desdemona asked them, mouth twisted in anger. 

“No.” Alice answered, “Not kidnapped. We would start to ask for volunteers and let them go on their way once the scans were done. The new synths could be made from many different people instead of copying the life of just one. Let them be their own person, let them learn about the world from people who have always meant well and can help them settle into their new lives.” 

“As if those machines can ever be human.” Maxson said. 

“They have the potential to be, but they will never be flesh and blood like you and I.” Shaun said, “The true advancement of humankind comes from not only the advancement of technology and letting it progress, but also knowing the depth of human depravity.” 

“Technology needs to be in the hands of those who know how to control it, how to respect it! Not in the hands of psychopaths like you and your bitch of a mother!” Maxson roared as he slammed his fist onto the table. 

Hancock glared at him, “Don’t talk about her like that. She’s a lot of things, but a psychopath ain’t one. And the next time you call her that word I fucking hate, I’ll make you eat your own fat nose. Ya feel me?” 

She placed her soft hand on his fist, “Thank you, John. But it's fine. We have more important things to worry about and discuss.” 

“What if we don’t want what you’re selling?” Deacon asked. 

“Then at least I can say that I tried. I am making you an offer for what the future that we can all stride for. If you take it or not, no harm will come to you. The world was already killed, and it's sick. I just want to try and make it a better place for the people who just want to live normal lives without being afraid of all the new dangers in the world.” 

Piper finished whatever she was writing and then looked right at Shaun, “What are you dying of, anyway?” 

“Lung cancer. It’s hard to breath anymore. Mother is too strong let this get to her though. She will be there at the very end, just as she was at the very start. It is only the middle that we need fill in now, with what little time we have left. Once I am gone, she will be given all that I have worked toward, and she may do with it as she wishes. But she wanted me to know before I left this life.”

“A mother's love.” Piper said and wrote down something on her paper.

“No. Just her worry.” Nick said. 

“So,” Hancock said and leant back in his chair, the plush leather easing his back, “you wanted us to meet so that we could try and be civil. I can work with that. Lay down the law's, sister. I’m all ears.” 

“You would have to have ears in the first place.” Danse snapped. Shaun gave him a look and then did a double take. He looked him over slowly, a smirk spreading over his face and then a chuckle. Which morphed into a full on laugh, that ended in a coughing fit. Alice got up from her chair and went around to his, slapping him on the back and rubbing what she had slapped. It helped to ease the coughing and then he shook his head, shooing his mother away and then looked right back at Danse with a wide smirk on his face. 

“I must say, I didn’t think that you would be a Knight in the Brotherhood. I personally thought that the “military” mimic was a dead end when it was first proposed. And yet,” Shaun chuckled once more and stood, “here you are. A fully functional synth, so assured of your own...humanity that you thought yourself nothing more than a very good foot soldier. I suppose the power armor did help to explain why you didn’t get hurt like others.” 

Danse seemed to pale, his whole face an ashen white, “I am a human man. I am no synth.” 

Shaun reached into his coat and pulled out a small white stick. He turned it on and a green light shone out. He pointed it at Nick, revealing his inner workings. Tubes and wire and metal. He pointed it slowly at each Courser, and then at his own hand. Human flesh and bone. He pointed it at Piper, right at her face, and as she squinted her face was nothing but a lump of flesh, and then he pointed it at Danse.

Wires, tubes, metal, not a single living thing. 

Maxson jumped away, a scowl on his face, “Traitor!” 

Danse stood, his hands held up in front of him, a pleading gesture, “NO! I...I’m human! I swear! This is all a lie!” 

“You sound just like a dirty synth. A liar. A wolf in sheep's clothing, hoping to lead those who are truly just astary.” Maxson snapped and then pointed at Shaun, his finger sharp and pointed, stern and shaking in anger, “I want to leave this place, now you monster. I don’t care what you and your bitch mother want; I will have no part of it.” 

“By all means,” Shaun said and tilted his head to the door, “you are free to leave. You will escorted and all your things returned to you.” 

Maxson glared at Shaun and spat, “You can keep your tin soldier. He is not wanted in the Brotherhood. Men and woman only. Monsters,” a look at Hancock, who flipped him the bird and stood, “and machines,” a glare at Nick who rolled his eyes, “are not welcome.” 

As he went toward the door, Hancock grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. And right into his fist. Maxson fell with a grunt and glared up at Hancock, moving to jump up when he slammed his foot down on his chest, Hancock resting his wiry weight on his chest, a smirk in place, “I told you that the next time you say that word, we would have problems.” 

“Get off me you fucking animal.” Maxson snarled. Hancock felt a smooth hand on his shoulder and he turned to look over his shoulder. Alice was looking at him, eyes looking right into his, and for the life of him, he could not place the emotion in them. But holy hell if he could tell those eyes and the woman they belonged to “no” a single day in his life. He turned back to Maxson, pressing down just a little more firmly before pushing off of him and taking his seat once more. Danse tried to help Maxson up but was backhanded before he stormed out. 

Four Coursers left with him. Danse sat down heavily in his chair, looking at his hands. The whole room was tense with unspoken words and readily aimed punches. Alice sighed heavily, her hair falling to hide her eyes as she leant on the table, one hand covering her mouth and the other curled under her breastbone. Shaun sat back down and a very nice looking red-head came in and handed them each a holotape, and a thick cream colored envelope. Alice didn’t look at any of them when she next spoke. 

“The tape is for you to listen to when you’re alone. The papers inside of the envelope are terms and conditions to this alliance. You are free to choose your own path in life, no one can MAKE you choose. The device inside along with the papers lets us know that you agree and we will pick you up to iron out the finer details. There is no time limit on this. The future comes with every sunrise. You can stay another day and rest if you need to or you can leave, it's up to you.”

Danse finally looked up and then right at the kid who had been there to whole time, watching, not saying one word. Danse looked right at Alice. 

“Who is this kid?” 

The boy answered, a preppy and youthful voice with a bright smile, “I’m Shaun! She’s my mom. I promised to be real quiet if she let sit in. I did a good job,” he asked and then looked at Alice, eyes wide and hopeful and so fucking human and familiar(they were her eyes, the same color and the same star like brilliance that saw the good in everyone, even if they didn’t deserve it) to Hancock, “right mom?” 

Alice looked at him and her smile was so tired, “Yes. You were a good boy, sweetie.” 

Danse looked at Shaun, the real one, “What the fuck is wrong with you?” 

Shaun answered, “I believe that children are our future. They are also our past and present.”

Hancock looked down at the holotape. The argument was ready to explode. Alice sighed and moved toward the door, “I’ll walk you all out.” 

The fake Shaun, younger Shaum, jumped from his chair and ran to Alice, gripping her hand and falling into step with her. The heated words came like the backlash of the bomb once the door was shut. X6-88 was with them, watching them. Nick and Piper needed to get back, but would be in contact as soon as they could. Alice hugged them and watched them vanish in the light. She looked at him and he smirked. She smiled at that and then rubbed at her eyes.

“Tired, doll?” 

She gave a short chuckle, “Wanna see something cool?” 

“With you? Always.” 

She lead them high above the world. The roof. The sun was high in the sky, and the world was before them. Shaun and X6-88 played tag behind them. Shaun played and X6-88 stood as still as rock, standing a short distance away from them as Shaun played around him. She took a seat, her legs hanging off the end of the world. She had grabbed her bag before they had come out here. She reached in and took out two Nuka-Cola bottles. A cherry and regular. She gave him the cherry. They drank in silence as the sun walked across the sky. She held her bottle in between her hands, between her legs and she didn’t look at him when she asked him what he saw. 

He looked out what was left from Before. He didn’t know what he saw, “Dunno. What do you see when you look at this?” 

“What do I see?” she sighed and took a sip of her drink and then set it down between them, letting her body fall back softly so she was looking up at the sky, “I see...this place...this.... this will be a barren stretch of desert, strewn with human debris shot out by an explosion from their precursors being too damn prideful to admit that they were wrong. These shiftless fellows will mope around and complain about the heat and lack of water. The shadows up on the hills will watch and watch, but will come no closer. Squinting, the newcomers will see the shadows in the hills and then they will squint further and further, until their eyes are closed, because if you can’t see it then it isn’t real. And then they will hum until their minds are empty, and sit dreaming until their dreams are clean, and they will never look at the hills again. They will cease to believe in anything at all. Elevation will become a laughable thing, for the world has narrowed into single days in repeat, even though it hasn’t gotten smaller; there is just less and less and less in it. The sky, a starry stranger. The ground, a barren friend. The cliff dwellings are empty now, but their scattered children are manifest, and filled with love and mirth and grief.”

Hancock looks down at her and then takes a sip of his own drink, “I understand all of, nothing of what you said, babe.” 

She laughs, her legs curling up and her arms holding her stomach as she laughs and she lets out a full body sigh and then looks at him, “All I see is devastation. Devastation that once was mere existence. People and buildings reduced to holes in space and time. Gaps, both concrete and metaphorical. Losses that would be overwhelming if everything didn’t already precede in a state of pre-loss, each thing defined in its existence by the nothing that will come after: devastation and ruins. But I see the world for what is once was and what we can make it into. I see potential to do good.” 


End file.
